What to look for in an IT Support Partner

What to look for in an IT Support Partner

Your IT and the support it receives is fundamental to your business. It’s what keeps the clock ticking. At the end of the day most work is now completed via a device. Think about it. How have you communicated with people today? How are you reading this blog? How are your team keeping track of your customers and clients? All of our general working day activities are done through a device, whether that is a PC, tablet or mobile phone. Our lives, both working and personal, revolve around technology.

Now imagine if that technology was taken away. The PCs in the office won’t switch on, the server is doing something odd and everyone keeps telling you they can’t access anything. The emails begin to pile up, invoices don’t get sent out and your staff are at a standstill: you’re losing money. At this point in time you need someone to rely on, you need someone to call when you need help. You need some kind of IT Support, whether that’s to support your internal IT resource or to be the sole resource for your business.

When it comes to choosing an IT Support company you need to make sure that you are choosing wisely. It doesn’t matter who they are, whether they are ACUTEC or one of our fellow IT Support providers, it matters that they are right for you and they can support you both with your IT issues and your IT strategy. We thought we would put together some of the things that you need to consider when it comes to choosing an IT partner so that you can make sure that you have the best resources accessible to you.

Have they done this before?

IT companies can do a manner of different things. For example, ACUTEC provides IT Support as well as infrastructure installations, Cloud migrations, software development and security. Whatever relationship you are embarking on with your new IT partner you need to be sure that they are experienced. Whether they are going to be your IT Support for the next three years or they’re just going to migrate you to Office 365, you need to know they know what they are doing. You should explore their website for case studies and testimonials. If you can’t find any on the website then ask for them. See who they have worked with before. Have they dealt with a company of your size before? Have they dealt with companies with more than one site? Ask the questions and make sure that they are seasoned enough to be able to provide the support that you need.

How do they deal with issues?

Even with IT Support in place things can still go wrong, for example a server could fail or you could experience a ransomware attack. In this instance you need to know that the company you have chosen will stand to attention and deal with the issue quickly and effectively to get your business back up and running. Again, you need to ask the question. What happens in the event of a major incident? How will the company react? What are their processes? How quickly can you expect to be back up and running? Do they guarantee that they will fix it?

Are they qualified?

You want to know that the company you have chosen know what they are doing. For example, if you are looking for a partner to work with to migrate your business to Office 365 then you should check they have Microsoft accreditations like Small and Midmarket Cloud Solutions. Are they gold? Are they silver? For a company to achieve a Microsoft competency it takes hard work. The company’s engineers must have passed so many exams and the company has to have a certain amount of experience and references. If you want an IT project to be successful, you need to know that there is a likelihood of it being so. Working with experienced and qualified engineers will ensure that you are in safe hands.

Do they understand your business?

There is no point in putting a fancy new thing in place if it is not going to benefit you or your business. When you are choosing a partner for IT Support you need to know that they understand what you are trying to achieve and will help you in making it a reality. A good IT company will work with you to create an IT strategy in line with the overall business strategy to ensure that everything is in place for you to be able to achieve your objectives.

How do they work?

If you’re looking for a company to provide you with IT Support you need to make sure that you know how they work as well as them knowing about you. You’re probably going to be working with them for at least a year and that can be a long time if their way of working is frustrating. Find out exactly what their processes are and how they manage the support that you will receive. Will they triage your issue in comparison to their other clients? Will they make sure that you are responded to in an appropriate time? Don’t be afraid to ask questions about exactly how things will work.

Making sure that you are choosing the right company to support your IT can be tricky. Our advice is to not be afraid to ask questions and find out exactly what you’re getting. If you want to ask ACUTEC those questions then we’re happy to answer. Just call 01675 469020.

The slideshare below sums up what you need to be looking for in your IT partner. If you have any questions then please call 01675 469020 or email hello@acutec.co.uk.

Ask the questions and sleep easy when it comes to IT

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